Sakura's Journey
by Kontontoshiteiru
Summary: Sakura accidentally goes back in time and meets the love of her life.


Sakura's Journey

Note: This takes place after Shipuuden, when Sakura is about 18 years old.

I do not own Naruto or any of the characters in it, though I wish I did.

"Like this, Kurenai-sensei?" asked Sakura Haruno as she formed a series of hand signs.

"No, no, no! Like this! Monkey, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Ox, Horse, Monkey, Hare! Portal Jutsu!!!" exclaimed Kurenai as she slammed her open palm on the ground. Three feet in front of her, a portal opened and began sucking in debris. "See ya on the other side!"

'Where the hell did she go this time?' thought Sakura as she readied herself for an attack. It didn't work. "Ow! That kinda hurt, you know!" she yelled as Kurenai popped out of nowhere and heel dropped her in the head.

"You're done for today. You don't have anymore chakra. Go home and rest. Be here first thing in the morning, got it?"

"Yes, sensei," said Sakura and walked away. "Jeez, this jutsu is retardedly hard!!! Oooh, I don't think I can-gah! What the hell is wrong with you, Kakashi-sensei!?" she yelled. Kakashi had just melted out of a tree in front of her.

"Well, I wanted to see how my student was doing. Not just anyone can master that Jutsu, you know. In fact, Kurenai is the only one in the village who can do it, so she'd trying to pass it on to someone. She asked around, and you have the best chakra control of all of the ninja your age," said Kakashi while casually reading his book. "There is one thing I need to tell you about that jutsu, though. If you get it wrong, it could cost you your life. I've seen it performed wrong, and the person who did so never came out of the portal. I guess my point is...be careful," and with that he disappeared back into the tree.

"Well, gee. I knew that!" yelled Sakura, shaking her fist at thin air. 'I guess I'll just go to bed. I need to rest anyway, I can barely stand right now...' thought Sakura, and walked home.

Her journey home was very uneventful. Other than seeing Naruto and ducking behind a tree to avoid being hit on, that is. Sakura got into her night clothes and went straight to bed.

"I'm here Kurenai-sensei!!! Sorry I'm late; I slept in a little too...where is she?" Just then, Kurenai dropped out of a portal and clapped Sakura on the back.

"It's okay! I just got here myself! Now, try the jutsu one more time. You know the combination, but I'll say it one more time just to be sure. Hare, Dragon, Snake, Ox, Horse, Monkey, Hare! Now try it!"

Okay, here goes..." muttered Sakura as she performed the seals. A portal appeared in front of her. "S-sensei! I did it! I did it! ...Wait...it doesn't...look right..."

"...And the person who did so never came out of the portal..."

"Crap! Kurenai-sensei! Help!!!" screamed Sakura, but it was too late. The portal was so strong it sucked her in.

"Oooow," moaned Sakura, rubbing her head. 'Wait...I'm alive? I thought that was supposed to kill me! I have to go home and tell my parents I'm okay!'

Sakura ran to her house, but didn't expect what she saw. It was her parents, indeed, but they looked different. She decided they were just doing something weird, like always, and walked in.

"Who are you? I don't know you! Get out of my house!"

"Mom! It's me!"

"I don't have any children! And no child of mine is growing up to be a ninja! Now get out before I call the police!"

"Fine, fine! Must be the wrong house!" Sakura searched around the village, and there was no doubt about it. That was her house. 'I don't get this! Why don't my parents recognize me? I'll go see Tsunade-sama. She'll know what's going on...' thought Sakura, who was already on her way to the Hokage's office.

"Um...excuse me? Tsunade-sama?"

"If you're looking for Tsunade, you'll have to go search yourself. No one's seen her in years," said a voice from behind Sakura.

"What are you talking about? She's the fifth Hokage! How can she not have been...seen?" Sakura said, muttering the last word. She had turned around to face someone she'd never seen before. 'Naruto? No, he's too old to be Naruto. Too tall too, and too good looking... Wait, what am I thinking? I need to figure this out! Let's see, I think I've seen him in pictures before... No way... He's the Fourth Hokage!!!' "You're the fourth Hokage! I thought you were dead!"  
"Dead? What? Nope, I'm alive and well, little lady!"

"So, I think I get it. That jutsu you were trying is one I developed. I also developed another version, which you must have accidentally performed. The other version is... Time Travel Jutsu!!!"

"What? How? I thought that was impossible!"

"Nope, not after I made up this technique. I was the only person ever to survive it, though... Strange... You must have incredible chakra control! You may be stuck here for the rest of your life. You may as well make the best of it. I'll arrange for you to have a place, wherever you want. I'll also get you enlisted a Ninja team, so you can make some money to live off of."

"I'd like to live with you-Eek!!!" squealed Sakura. 'Omigod! I didn't mean to say that! Why did I say that? Did I just really say that? Omigod, he's gonna think I'm a freak!' "I-I-I-I'm sorry... I don't know why I said that... I-I-I'll just go... Huh?"

"Don't go," said the Fourth as he grabbed her hand. "I have an extra room in my house. That won't be a problem."

"Really? Thank you!" exclaimed Sakura, throwing her arms around his neck.

"Well, since you obviously don't have any thing to bring, shall we go? I was gonna skip out early today, anyway," said Fourth, with a smirk and a wink, which made Sakura blush a deep red.

"O-okay..."

"Wow! This place is huge!!!" exclaimed Sakura as she saw the Fourth's house. It was the colors of the village, red and green, and designed in the traditional Japanese style.

"Come on, let me give you the grand tour," said the Fourth, putting a hand on Sakura's back and guiding her towards the door. At his touch, her heart began to race, and her face turned a barely noticeable bright pink, like her hair.

'Why did that happen? I only just met him! I can't have feelings for him this early...can I?' she thought as he guided her through the house. She didn't even listen to what he said; she was too lost in thought.

"And this is your room," said the Fourth, snapping Sakura out of her trance.

"Oh...thanks. Oh, hey, I never asked your name!!! Sorry about that..."

"Don't worry about it. My name is Minato Namikaze. You can just call me Minato," he said with a big goofy smile, which made Sakura giggle.

"Thanks. I'm really tired. Do you mind if I go to bed?"

"Not at all. My room is two doors down, if you need anything, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you again. I really appreciate this."

"Sleep tight. Don't hesitate to ask for anything."

Sakura laid down, but didn't sleep. She only thought. 'Why did I act like that around him? I don't like him do I? I can't tell. I've only ever felt this way for Sasuke, and I couldn't get him out of my head. I can't get Minato out of my head, either, though!!! I don't know what to do! I'll just sleep on it,' she thought as she fell into a light sleep.

Miles above the village, the storm of storms was brewing. Its winds made its rains fall sideways. Its thunder was deafening, and it's lightening blinding. It cracked trees, it lit fires. It made people run for shelter, made mothers cradle children. The most fearless shinobi fled from its might.

Sakura lay peacefully in her bed, unaware of the storm that was wreaking havoc on Konoha. A lightening bolt hit so close to the house, you could not only hear the thunder, but also the impact of the bolt. Sakura woke with a high pitched scream and looked around. "What's wrong!? Are you okay?" yelled Minato as he threw open her door and ran in. He sat on the floor next to Sakura and wrapped her in his arms. Again, her heart raced and her face turned pink at his touch.

"Uh...yeah, I-I'm fine. T-thank you," stammered Sakura.

"Are you sure? You don't sound fine."

"I'm sure. Thank you again," said Sakura and looked up at him. He was looking straight into her eyes. She noticed his eyes were bright blue, like the sky, and they had a gentleness in them she'd never seen before. Before she knew what she was doing, she leaned up and kissed him lightly on the lips. Once she did realize what she was doing, her eyes shot open to see his again, but this time they had a puzzled look in them. "Aaaah!!!" screamed Sakura and jumped back. "I am so sorry! I didn't know what I was doing!!! I didn't mean it! I mean I did, but not like that! Oh, I don't know! I'm sorry!" she ranted, gripping her head to make sense of the situation. 'Oh my God! I just kissed him! What am I, crazy? I can't believe I just did that!!!' she thought and turned away from Minato. "Um...can I be alone for a little while? I'll be okay."

"Sure. Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks," said Sakura and finally turned around to face him. She saw him walk out, and collapsed from the shock of what she just did. 'Oh...he's gonna hate me! I should just leave. That's what I'll do. I'll go to an ally village. I don't have any stuff, so I can just go. Bye, Minato. Thanks again.'

She opened the door and ran straight into something that felt like an iron pillar. She put her hands up and felt it, and realized what it was. She had run right into Minato! He was standing outside her door the entire time. "Wh-wh-wh-what are you doing here? I thought you went back to your room!!!"

"Nope. I knew you'd try to run away, so I stood here to stop you. You don't need to be ashamed of what just happened. You can't help the way you feel, and I don't hold it against you. In fact..." he trailed off as he kissed her lightly on the lips. "...I kinda liked it."

Sakura just stood there, silent, in shock. 'He liked it? He likes me back? Why? He just met me,' she thought as she stared into space.

"Hello!!! Earth to Sakura!" said Minato with another goofy grin, waving his hand in front of her face.

"Gah!!! Wha? Oh, yeah... Um...did you say you liked it? Um...if you don't mind another question...why?" asked Sakura, risking looking up.

"It's like I said. People can't help feeling the way they feel. I felt something about you the first time I saw you. Now I know what it is. I guess you could call it love at first sight." This statement made Sakura look down and blush furiously, so furiously that she could feel the heat from her own face.

"L-l-love...? Really...? I wouldn't know. I don't think I've ever really loved anyone, just liked someone because everyone else did."

"An Uchiha?" interjected Minato with a smile.

"Yeah! How'd you know?"

"All the girls in the village like one Uchiha or another. Mainly Itachi. Just because they're powerful, too. Which one is it?"

"Um...Sasuke. I don't think he's been born yet, though. That's weird to think about..." whispered Sakura, trailing off. Her mind was still stuck on the two kisses that had happened not even five minutes apart.

"Well, you get some sleep. See you in the morning, okay?"

"O...okay. 'Night," said Sakura. She turned around and went back to bed without another word. This time she slept all the way through the night, with a smile on her face.

"Mmmm..." moaned Sakura as she rolled over and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. At first she didn't recognize her surroundings, and then remembered what happened. She was back in time. She also remembered what had happened the night before. 'Did that really happen, or was it a dream?' wondered Sakura before she got up and headed towards Minato's room. She knocked on the door, heard "Come in!", and slid the door open.

"Oh, hey! You're up. You're a heavy sleeper, ya know that? It's almost noon!"

"What!!! Oh, who cares? It's not like I have a reason to get up early right now..." said Sakura as she took a seat in a chair next to the door. "Hey, can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot."

"Um...did I think what happened last night really happen?"

"If you're talking about me kissing you, and vice versa, yes. It happened. Why?"

"Cuz, I thought it was only a dream. I guess it wasn't..." said Sakura, trailing off again. 'Wow it really did happen. What's gonna happen now...?'

Minato walked over to Sakura and kissed her on the cheek. "Hey, you okay? You don't regret it, do you? Cuz I don't."

"Really? You don't think I'm a freak?" asked Sakura excitedly. She looked up at him with wide eyes and a big smile on her face.

"Why would I? I said it was love at first sight, didn't I? I didn't say that for nothing, you know," said Minato, and walked away to get a scroll. "You remember how I said I was working on that time traveling technique? Here's the scroll that tells you how do to it. Study it, okay? I have to go now, Hokage business and all. See ya later," and with that, he was gone.

Sakura went back to her room and opened the scroll. She barely understood it, but got enough to understand the Jutsu. She sat staring at the scroll for a while, lost in thought. 'I don't know if I want to use this. I think I want to stay here...with him," thought Sakura with a smile on her face. She fell asleep at the desk in her room.

"Sakura, I'm back!!! Sakura?" yelled Minato as he walked into his house. He went to her room and opened the door. "You've been studying that hard, huh?" he whispered as he walked over to her. "Hey...Sakura. Wake up..." said Arashi, brushing some of her hair out of her face. "It's not good to sleep like this." She still didn't wake up. "Oh, fine," he said, picking her up and placing her in her bed.

"Minato..." moaned Sakura, still asleep.

"Yeah?"

"I don't wanna go..."

"What? Hey, what did you say?" but she had fallen back asleep. 'Guess I'll have to find out when she wakes up in the morning.'

Sakura woke with a start. "Minato?" she asked to naught but the walls. "Oh, I could swear he was here..." said Sakura as she got out of bed. She went back to Minato's room, but found him on the way. "Hey!" she said with a smile on her face.

"Hey, I wanna ask you something. Last night, I found you asleep at your desk, so I put you in bed...and you said something..."

"I did?" asked Sakura, more than a little worried.

"Yeah...you said...you didn't want to go."

"I did?" inquired Sakura, a little quizzical. 'I was thinking that, but I don't remember saying it. I must've said it in my sleep...' she thought, thinking hard. "Um...that's because I don't. I've decided to stay in this time...with you. I don't really have anything going for me in my time. Besides...you...make me happy..." she whispered the last part. She also blushed a little and turned back and forth on the spot.

"Well, to tell the truth, I was hoping you'd say that," said Minato, scratching the back of his head and smiling ear to ear. "So...that being said...you wanna go somewhere for dinner?"

"What? You mean...like a..." stammered Sakura, a little confused.

"A date. Yes. So you wanna go, or what?"

"Of course!" exclaimed Sakura excitedly. 'Oh, did that sound too eager?' she asked herself. 'Eh, who cares? I'm going on a date!!!'

"Okay, let's go!" said Minato, grabbing her hand and dashing off at super ninja speed.

They landed in front of a very fancy looking restaurant. "Um...I don't think I'm dressed okay for this place..." said Sakura looking at herself. She was dressed in her normal ninja wear.

"Ah, don't worry. They'll cut ya some slack if you're with me," said Minato with a wink, which made his date blush, yet again.

"Oh my goodness! This stuff is so expensive!!!" said Sakura, looking at the menu. "I'll help pay. I have a little money," said Sakura, taking out her wallet, but Minato put his hand on hers to stop her.

"I won't have it. You're here with me. I'll pay. I am the Hokage, after all," said Minato. "Get what you want. Don't worry."

"O-okay...thanks," said Sakura a little weakly.

"So, did you enjoy yourself?" asked Minato on his walk with Sakura back to his place. They were walking down a main street, now abandoned because of the time. A full moon hung low in the sky, and not a single gust ruined the warm weather.

"Yeah!" said Sakura. "The food there is so good! Hey, thanks again for paying..." said Sakura, a little embarrassed.

"Hey, don't worry about it. It was my choice, so I don't regret it."

They walked in silence for a while, just enjoying each others company. Right about when the silence was getting awkward, Minato took Sakura's hand in his, interlacing their fingers. Sakura looked at their hands, then at her date, blushed, and then smiled. Without saying a word, she moved closer and leaned her head on his shoulder. This made him blush, but he didn't say a word. They stayed like this until they got home.

"So...I'll see ya tomorrow?" asked Minato as they stopped at Sakura's room.

"Well, I am living in your house," joked Sakura and kissed him on the lips. "'Night," she said and backed into her room.

Minato stayed there for a minute, smiling and thinking. 'Wow...that was great. Best date I've had in a while.' He walked away, and just as he did so, he heard Sakura's squeal of joy. 'She really did have a good time. Good.'

'I can't believe it! I just had my first date!!! Oh, I never thought I could be that happy around someone... I've never felt like this for anyone...not even Sasuke...' thought Sakura as she fell asleep.

This went on for about a year. They had dates, sometimes to dinner, sometimes to nowhere, just to look at the stars. Everyday seemed like the happiest day of Sakura's life. She was so glad she'd decided to stay behind. They'd gotten more intimate as well. Their kisses were more passionate, and they'd started going to be together. This was also Sakura's first time...

"Minato!!! Minato, where are you!!!" yelled Sakura, entering the kitchen"

"What, what? You'd think someone died!!!"

"Um...I need to tell you something... You know that certain time of the month for me?" she asked, wringing her hands in front of her.

"Oh, don't start talking about that! You know how much I hate it!!!"

"I KNOW! I need to tell you something! It's a week late."

"So...what's that mean?" asked Minato, fear in his voice.

"I just got back from the hospital. Um...I don't know how to say this, so I just will. Minato, I'm pregnant..." said Sakura, her face turning crimson.

"Wahoo!!! Yeah!!!" yelled Arashi, getting up and celebrating.

"Hey! Don't say that! Do you know what this means? This is a huge commitment! I don't know if I'm ready...I'm scared," said Sakura, her eyes starting to fill with tears.

"Hey...hey! It's okay! It's going to be okay! You'll be a great mother! I'll be here for you the entire time, okay? I won't abandon you because of this. To tell the truth, I've always wanted a kid..."  
"Really? Thank you..." said Sakura as she started to cry. She buried her face in his chest and cried. Minato wrapped her in his arms and held her close. She cried for a while, but eventually calmed down. "You okay?" he asked as she looked at him. She nodded and he wiped the tears from her face. "I don't like to see you cry. It'll be okay, I'll help you through this," he said and kissed her on the lips very passionately, and she kissed him back. He led her to the couch and sat down, wrapping his arms around her.

"Thank you, Minato. I love you..." whispered Sakura as she fell asleep with her head resting on his chest.

"I love you, too," whispered Minato and kissed her on the top of the head. He shortly fell asleep as well, holding the one he loved.

"So...it's been about eight months, right?" asked Minato while he and Sakura ate breakfast.

"And three weeks. I'm due in five days!!!" squealed Sakura. She had gotten used to the idea of being a mother, and actually was excited now.

"I can't wait! I've been looking forward to being a father for a while now. Well, I have to go be the Hokage again. You know where the servants are if you need anything, k?"

"Yeah, I know. I'll see you later," said Sakura and got up to give him a kiss goodbye. 'It's so boring around here! I can't be a ninja if I'm pregnant, so I can't do anything! I suppose I could work on the Jutsu..." said Sakura, thinking of a Jutsu she was working on before she got sucked into the portal that ultimately resulted in her being a mother.

"Damn it!!!" yelled Sakura after having a contraction, which messed up her hand signs. The resulting Jutsu couldn't even heal a minor cut she had placed on her own finger. "Okay, let's try this again..." she muttered a few seals, and placed her hands on an injured rabbit she'd found in the yard. Both of its legs were broken, and it had a cut down its spine. If this didn't work, it would die. Sakura put all her energy into the technique, and it worked. She faintly saw the rabbit hop away before she passed out.

"Sakura!!! Sakura, get up!!!" said Minato as he gently shook her into consciousness.

"Huh?" asked Sakura groggily, sitting up and leaning against the Hokage for support. "What happened...?"

"I found you passed out on the floor. What happened??? You weren't working on that Jutsu again, were you?" asked Minato, genuine worry in his voice and features.

"Um...yeah. I was," groaned Sakura, sitting on her own now and rubbing her head. "It worked this time, though!" she said excitedly, hoping to throw him off. It didn't work.

"I told you not to do that. The doctors have, too!!! It's too dangerous to use medical Jutsu of any kind while you're this far! You could kill both of you! I don't know what I'd do if I lost you..." whispered Minato, embracing her and holding her tight.

"I'm sorry," said Sakura, hugging him back and getting up. "I'm gonna go to bed early. That really took it out of me. I'll see ya tomorrow, okay?" she asked, kissing him lightly on the lips.

"Yeah, yeah, just don't scare me like that again!!!"

Because Sakura had promised to not try anymore Ninjutsu, she was bored out of her mind for the next four days. That is, until...

"Minato!!! Minato! It's time!!!"

"What!? Now? Oh, man! I didn't know it'd be this early!" he said, looking out the window. The sun hadn't even risen yet.

"Yes, now! What do you think, I'm gonna joke about this! Just hurry up and take me to the hospital!!!"

"Uh...uh...okay! Let's go! We don't have time to walk. I'll teleport us."

"Don't screw up like I did."  
"I won't. Come on, let's go!"

They both materialized in front of the hospital, and Minato picked Sakura up and carried her in. "Hey! She's gonna have a baby!!!" he yelled as he walked in. Several nurses put Sakura on a stretcher and wheeled her into a room, which Minato wasn't allowed to go into.

After what felt like hours of waiting, there was a crash outside of the village. Minato could see something red, and knew what it was. He burst into the room Sakura was in. "Hey, you can't be in here!" yelled a nurse, but he paid her heed.

"Sakura, Kyuubi is here. I'm so sorry. I have to go fight him."

"Go! I'll be fine!" said Sakura, barely able to stay calm from the pain of labor.

"I love you. I'll be back. I promise."

"Hokage-sama!!! We tried to hold him off, but we couldn't. Half of the shinobi in the village have died because of this thing. We need your help!"

"Don't worry. I'm here. You men did well to hold him off at all. Thank you. I'll take care of him once and for all!!!"

Minato bit his right thumb, performed a series of hand signs, slammed his open palm on the ground, and yelled, "Summoning Jutsu!!!" There was a cloud of smoke as big as the Fox himself. When it cleared, Minato was standing on Gamabunta, the most powerful toad. "You ready old friend?" asked the summoner.

"Always! I'd give my tail to kick this guy's ass!!! Let's go!!!" Gamabunta unsheathed his giant blade and rushed Kyuubi with a slash at the throat. Kyuubi dodged it and slashed at the toad's face, giving him a massive cut across his left eye. "Ah!!! You'll pay for that, you red rodent!!! Minato! Do it!!!"

"Right!" yelled Minato as he did a few hand signs. "Toad Oil Bullet!" Gamabunta took a deep breath and spat massive amounts of oil at Kyuubi. "Dragon Flame Jutsu!" exclaimed Minato as he blew a dragon shaped flame at the oil. It lit up like a candle and engulfed the fox demon in fire.

"Yeah!! Got him! Wahoo!" yelled Minato as he jumped up and down on Gamabunta's head. Suddenly, there was a blast of red chakra and fire, and Kyuubi stood unscathed.

"You'll have to do better than that if you want to be rid of me!"

"What the hell!? That did affect him at all?" yelled Minato in disbelief. 'He's more powerful than I thought he was. Heh. Let's try this...' he thought, holding out both hands. Chakra began swirling in his hands, faster and faster, larger and larger. "Gamabunta! Get me close! I'm gonna use it."

"You fool! You haven't perfected that yet!!! Well, it's not like I can stop you. Hold on!"

Gamabunta ran flat out at the fox, and Minato jumped at him. He put his hands together, and the two Rasengans came together. "Rasengan Cannon!!!" yelled Minato as he hurled the ball of chakra at Kyuubi. It hit him square in the face, and he went flying, out of sight.

The yells of congratulations and celebration could be heard from the village. "Stop! Now!" screamed Minato. The attack had taken so much out of him that he could barely stand. "Kyuubi is far from dead! That only bought us a couple of days at best! Go home! Rest! Get you minds and bodies ready! When he comes back, he's gonna be pissed, and he'll show no mercy! The village may not make it out of this! Spend what time you have with your families! Evacuate all non-Ninja families!" Minato barely got this little speech out before he passed out.

Minato woke to the sight of two faces, and a white, sterile hospital room. One face he recognized as Sakura, the woman he loved. The other was young, unfamiliar. It took him a minute to realize it was his son. His, as of yet, unnamed son.

"Nurse! Come quick! He's awake!" said Sakura as Minato opened his eyes. A nurse came in and started to check him out.

"He's fine, just exhausted. I can imagine why, too! He sent that cursed fox flying with a single attack!"

"Yup! That's my Minato. Thank you, nurse," said Sakura with a smile and a proud look on her face as the nurse left.

"Does he have a name?" asked Minato, indicating the newborn in Sakura's arms.

"No. I wanted to wait for you to do that."

"Well, in that case, I want to name him after the bravest man I ever met. He saved my life, and died in doing so. I still owe him everything, but this is all I can do now."

"That sounds wonderful! What's his name?"

"Naruto Uzumaki."

Sakura's heart stopped. 'Th-this is...Naruto? I knew Minato was his father but...I'm his mother??? Wait...if Naruto got the fox sealed in him when he was a newborn...that means...' thought Sakura, eyes wide and brimming with tears.

"Sakura! What's wrong?" asked Minato, kissing her on the fore head in an attempt to calm her down.

"I'I just remembered...I-In my time...y-you d-died. You s-sealed Kyuubi's soul in Naruto..." Sakura stammered through sobs.

"Hey, hey!!! Now that I know that I can figure out some other way to get rid of him! It'll be okay, I promise."

"O-okay," sobbed Sakura, and kissed him lightly.

"Can you go home? I want to spend some time with you and him alone."

"Yeah. We were only here to wait for you. We can leave any time."

"Good, let's go," said Minato, getting up and holding the door for Sakura.

"Can I hold him?" Minato asked Sakura on the way home.

"Of course! Just don't drop him..." Sakura said sarcastically.

"Oh, shoosh, I won't. C'mere, little guy!" He took Naruto from Sakura. "Hey there...you're so light!!!" said Minato with a surprised look on his face.

"Well, he's only a baby! He can't weigh that much," said Sakura with a giggle.

"Hey! What's wrong!?" exclaimed Minato as Naruto began to cry.

"I just fed him...he must be tired... I'll put him to bed when we get home.

Just then, there was a familiar crash. Minato looked in the direction of the noise and saw smoke billowing up "Kyuubi. He's back. Go home, stay with Naruto and hide."

"No! I'm gonna fight! I can't let you face that thing alone!" exclaimed Sakura, tears in her eyes yet again.

"No way in hell! I can't let you fight that thing!"

"But-"  
"I said no! I ca-"

"Damn it, listen to me!!! I'm a medical Ninja, you know that. But I never told you who trained me! It was Tsunade, the Sannin herself! I can fight on par with her, as well as heal almost any wound! You can't tell me that won't be useful!!!"

"...Alright. Leave Naruto with the maids, they'll take good care of him. But, I'm telling you now, if you get injured, I'm going to drag you off the battle field, got it?"

Sakura nodded and brought Naruto home. "Take care of him. Me and Minato are going to fight Kyuubi."

"But-"

"No buts!!! My mind is made up!"

She walked back outside and met up with Minato. "Ready?" she asked, and grabbed his hand. They raced off towards Kyuubi for the battle of their lives.

They landed in a clearing in the forest. It would have been peaceful, but Kyuubi was there, and the only reason it was a clearing was because Kyuubi had leveled a square mile of trees. "I'll start healing! You go fight!"  
"Right!"

Sakura set to work healing minor and major wounds alike, keeping some behind and telling others to help Minato. Her work was never truly done; sweat began to bead her brow, reflected by the low, orange sun. Constantly, people were being knocked aside by Kyuubi, and others were killed on contact with the beast. 'Man, I've never healed this much in one battle. I can't stop, though! It's my duty to keep these men fighting!' thought Sakura as the fatigue started to get to her.

"You bastard!" yelled Minato and Gamabunta as one. Kyuubi had just deflected another shot with the toad oil bullet. "How about this?" inquired the toad as he went in with his blade again. He succeeded in giving the Fox a cut on his side, but it only managed to make him angrier.

"You stupid toad!!! I'll crush your head! You'll wish you were never born!!!" yelled Kyuubi in pain from the wound. He rushed Gamabunta and Minato and knocked them over, going for the toad's throat.

"Oh my God!" yelled Sakura as she saw Gamabunta fall over. 'I have to help him!' she thought, and surveyed her surroundings. All the men were either restricted from further battle, or dead. 'Alright, it's fine here. I'm coming! Don't die!!!'

She rushed in and found Minato lying on the ground, unconscious and covered in cuts. 'Please be alive,' was all she could think as she kneeled down next to him and checked his pulse. 'He's alive. Good.' She immediately started healing his wounds, and he woke up.

"Hey, what happened?" he asked in bewilderment.

"You and Gamabunta got knocked over. He's fine, but I have to heal you. Sit still," she said, pumping more chakra into her Jutsu to heal him faster. "There, all done! I'll go with you this time to heal you on the spot!" said Sakura, and they both jumped up on Gamabunta.

"Hey there, little lady. You here to fight to?" asked Gamabunta when he noticed Sakura.

"I'm here to heal. Just pretend I'm not here."

"Alright. Minato, you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be. Let's get this over with."

The fighting continued for well over a day. Kyuubi never once let up, but neither did Gamabunta and Minato. Sakura had her hands full healing Minato and the minor wounds Gamabunta got. Then she had an idea.

"Minato! Why don't you teleport him? I'm sure you could get him far enough away so that he'll never bother us again!"

"I can't. He'll just terrorize other people, and it'll be my fault. If I had thought of that in the beginning, I would have had enough chakra to get him to space, where he'd die instantly, but I'm too drained..."

Sakura had another idea. She took his left hand in her right. "We'll share our chakra. You use your right hand to form the seals, and I'll use my left! If we both put everything we've got into it, I'm sure he'll make it farther than we need him too!"

"You're a genius! Okay, ready?"

They both focused, and began carefully putting their hand together into the proper seals. "Monkey, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Ox, Horse, Monkey, Hare! Portal Jutsu!!!" they said in unison. A portal the size of Kyuubi appeared before him and started sucking him in.

"You think you're through with me??? I'll be back somehow, and when I am-"but he never finished that thought. The portal sucked him in as the moon began to rise, and no one ever heard from the cursed fox demon again.

There was a huge party, everyone in the village joined in. They were celebrating the defeat of their age old enemy, Kyuubi, the fox demon. "Thank you all!!! This would not have been possible without all of you!!!" said Minato from atop the Hokage's Tower. The mountain with the faces of the past Hokages was behind him; his face was only half in, though. All went silent as he spoke. "This is a great time for our village! We are finally rid of Kyuubi!!! May we have an era of piece to go with the era of suffering we have endured!!! I also want to thank Sakura Haruno. If you weren't there, I wouldn't have been able to defeat Kyuubi. I probably would have died if it weren't for you. Thank you," he said and kissed her. The entire village cheered when he did this, but he held out a hand to hush them. "Now I have something to do. Something somewhat important," said Minato, and got down on one knee. "Sakura Haruno. Will you marry me?"

The village was dead silent, waiting for her answer. The only sound that could be heard was the rustling of the wind through the trees, the occasional call of a hawk Tears filled her eyes, and, "Yes! Yes! Yes, a million times, yes!!!" she yelled and kissed her new fiancé. Every single person in the village cheered louder than they just had.

They had changed history. Under Minato and Sakura, Konoha had an age of peace. Sakura became the leader of a core of Medical Ninja, hand selected and trained by her. Because Naruto was normal, only containing one soul, he led a happy, successful life. He was the top of his class, and became a Jounin sooner than anyone in his class.

"Hey, hurry up! Naruto's ceremony is in an hour!" said Sakura Namikaze to her husband.

"I know, I know! I'm ready. Come on, let's go," he said, offering her his arm. She took it and they walked out of the house to the Hokage's Tower.

"This has been my dream, ever since I can remember. Thank you, Konoha. Thank you. I won't fail you, I'll be the best Hokage you've ever seen!!!" yelled Naruto Uzumaki as he donned the Hokage's hat. The village cheered as he put it on, and his father gave him a bear hug that almost squeezed the life out of him.

Naruto truly was a great Hokage. He formed treaties with all the neighboring villages, and participated in every battle. He was like his father though. He skipped out early to be with his girlfriend, Hinata Hyuuga. He also never lost his need to trick people and play pranks. But the one thing that annoyed his assistant most was the fact that he never did any paperwork, just like his father.

A/N: Well, it's finished. I've had this idea in my head for about a month, just never got the chance to put it down on paper. I know I totally strayed from what happened, but that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to make something I'd never seen before. Believe it or not, this started as a crack fic. I was originally going to have Sakura go back to her own time. Only, Naruto would have pink hair, and would still be hitting on her. I saw potential for this though, so I changed it. It's done, and I'm happy with it. Leave a review, huh? I'd like some criticism on what's only my second fan fiction!!!


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